Stealthy Wealth has challenged us all to a Frugal February month. I like the idea of challenging ourselves on a daily basis to be less wasteful, more frugal and more resourceful with what we have. This allows us to save as much money as we can along the way – to invest or to pay down debt or to save towards a big ticket item – so I’m definitely going to be taking part!

And here is how I plan on being more frugal, less wasteful and more resourceful with what we have this Frugal February month, and beyond.

Make a broth from veggie scraps

I’ve always wanted to try this! I often make chicken broth for us with ‘whole’ ingredients (onions, celery, carrots, etc.) and roast chicken bones but because we have a compost heap I’ve got so used to adding all our veggie scraps to the compost bin that I hardly think twice of using the veggie scraps for any other purpose! However, as the broth is going to be strained once cooked anyway I can then add the veggie scraps (which have pretty much just been boiled with no oil) and in this way, we can benefit doubly from the veggie scraps. I’ve found some nice ideas on how to use veggie scraps to make a broth here and here.

While this may not be a ‘money saver’ as such it will still make the money we’ve spent buying those veggies in the first place, go even further for us! I regularly make chicken broth for us as it’s so healthy and so delicious. We often have it as is (perfect for those cold winter evenings!) and I also often use it in cooking. It’s a much better and much tastier alternative to any stock cube you can buy in the shops, I promise!

Buy a R100.00/R200.00 food coupon from Checkers or Shoprite each month

This is a new concept that has come up in conversations quite often lately, both online and in real life. By investing R100.00 or R200.00 to buy a food coupon for the same value at either Checkers or Shoprite each month, paying for this coupon out of your monthly grocery budget, then you can save up the coupons to use at the end of the year towards your monthly grocery shop in December. This would mean a ‘savings’ of at least R1,200.00, or R2,400.00, because that’s money that won’t be coming out of your December salary!

I like this idea. A lot! It means that I would ‘free up’ extra money in my December budget which I can use to save or to invest in any way I want. I think it’s also going to take discipline reducing our food budget by R100.00 or R200.00 each month (I don’t want to go over budget because that would defeat the purpose of this exercise!) but I think it’s worth a try! I’m going to buy my first coupons when I do my month-end shopping next which will be end of February.

No more plastic shopping bags for me! Ever!

When I do my month-end shopping, I sometimes forget my shopping bags in the car. Guilty as charged, despite my best efforts! I only remember that I’ve forgotten them when I’m actually at the till and by that time, I must admit, I’m a tad bit lazy to go fetch them. Plastic shopping bags are not only a scourge on our environment, and even lethal to wildlife, but they also cost money. If you pay for, say 20 plastic shopping bags per month, at roughly 55c per bag (some shops charge you even more!) that works out to R11.00 per month or R132.00 per year. While this may not seem like a huge saving that’s still money totally wasted! Well, not any more.

This is going to be my personal challenge not only for the month of February, but beyond: to buy a R15.00 food coupon from Checkers or Shoprite instead of paying for plastic shopping bags each month! This will give me an extra R180.00 that I’ve ‘saved’ and can then use at the end of the year towards our monthly grocery shop in December. I must actually remember to take our shopping bags before walking into the shop though, all the time and not just sometimes, and if I do forget, actually go back and fetch them, it will only take a couple of minutes of my time!

We won’t be renewing our satellite TV subscription

On our debt-free journey, dropping our satellite TV subscription was one of the first things we did to cut costs and find extra money to throw at our debt. As you can imagine, it’s been a while since we’ve had to pay for satellite TV subscription. We have, as of lately, been discussing renewing our subscription but we’ve decided against it, after all. We realised that we don’t really miss having it that much and so we won’t be renewing our satellite TV subscription.

This currently saves us at least R8,000.00 per year (or probably a bit more – prices must have gone up over the last couple of years!) and I think we will continue to save that much! We often borrow DVDs from friends and sometimes, if we feel like watching a TV series, we can actually rent an entire season for the weekend for about R30.00. This is enough for us. I honestly don’t think that we’re depriving ourselves of anything really by not renewing our satellite TV subscription. We have more time to devote to our hobbies, our families, our pets and ultimately each other because we’re not glued to the goggle box every spare minute of our time!

We will start saving for Christmas expenses in February

Saving a small amount of money each month – from February onwards – for our Christmas expenses (mostly presents) has worked really well for us in the past! Last year, for example, we finished all our Christmas shopping before December and our presents were all wrapped and ready to go very early on! Not only did this save us our sanity (who wants to be anywhere near a shopping mall in December?!) but it was also good for our budget.

Because we started saving in February, we could afford to take advantage of really good sales and specials throughout the year. We certainly bought a lot more for a lot less. We will definitely be starting to save for Christmas expenses this February too. You can read more about how we do that here.

We won’t be buying into Valentine’s Day sales

Nope, not us. I don’t believe in buying Valentine’s Day any cutesy little thing, full stop. Besides, January wasn’t even over yet and already, the race was on for Valentine’s Day specials, gifts, discounts, promotions, ads, best gifts for him, for her, etc. at a time when many had only just finished buying Christmas presents for their loved ones! That much pressure has got to be tough on people’s budgets and wallets.

But, celebrating Valentine’s Day really is a matter of personal preference. We will be ‘celebrating’ it too but we just won’t be spending money to do it. There are hundreds upon hundreds of cheap Valentine’s Day dates, gifts, snacks, dinner and craft ideas on the internet so all hope is not lost for the frugal Valentine on a budget!

Save Cents for Charity

Who remembers their very own little piggy bank? I do! I loved my little piggy bank! As adults our savings tend to increase, and so they should, but sometimes I think we all forget just how much that little bit of money saved here and there in that pink piggy bank can make a difference! As children perhaps that meant we could buy more sweets or more ice cream cones or just one more Matchbox car to add to your collection. I’m pretty sure we all tried really hard to save up for those little things that made us happy.

As an adult now, sure, you could save up all those coins throughout the year and deposit the coins into your bank account in December but as much as I love saving I also love giving. When one of my favourite animal welfare charities sent out a post on their Facebook page just the other day inviting their supporters to start saving those 5c and 10c coins in a jar throughout the year and then donating the contents of the jar to them round about Christmas time, I thought what a great idea! So that’s what I’m going to be doing with my coins starting this February. I really think those itsy bitsy coins will add up! Imagine if so many of us did this very same thing, how much more we could give?

Will you be joining Stealthy Wealth’s Frugal February challenge? If so, then please share your frugal and money-saving ideas in the comments below.

Got any cost saving ideas? Share them with the hashtag #FrugalFeb and spread the word!
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The danger with end-of-season sales is precisely that – they are sales. It’s very tempting to buy items on sale simply because they are on sale, we all know that. I can’t quite decide if I love sales or if I hate them. Yes, I love bargains! I love buying things for less than what they normally cost. On the other hand, I don’t like being tempted to buy things which I don’t really need or when I can’t afford to buy them.

But sales come and go, as regular as clockwork. Each end of season has its sales, and every start of a new season has its sales too. We are constantly surrounded by one sale or the other as there always seems to be a reason for sales! Just the other day I noticed a ‘Back to University’ sale probably only about a week after the ‘Back to School’ sale had finished! Next up are Valentine’s Day specials and sales.

We can’t avoid sales. We love them – we hate them – but who doesn’t love a good bargain. I think that’s what’s so attractive about sales: we instinctively want to save money. But, shopping the sales, especially end-of-season sales, can be quite costly if you haven’t planned or budgeted for this sale or if you don’t have specific items on a shopping list.

Before I buy anything on a sale, this is what I ask myself which helps me make an informed decision and one that will indeed save me some cash.

Do I really need more shoes/shirts/socks/jeans, etc.? Or do I have enough?

This is probably the first question that comes to mind if I’ve come across a sale for which I hadn’t planned to shop. It can be hard to resist a good bargain sometimes but then again, knowing when you have enough of an item, for example shoes, should help curb your impulse to buy. Ask yourself: do I really need more or am I buying this item just because it’s on sale? I’ve never been much of a shopper but I have at times bought a bit more than I should have so it’s a familiar feeling.

As a general rule, I like to wait for items to go on sale, and especially end-of-season sales, to buy items which I need or which I know I will need to use next season. The end-of-season sale can sometimes be the best time to buy jerseys or winter pyjamas or sandals to wear to work or the patio set you’ve been saving for. Anything, really. I’m all for taking advantage of sales to buy items that I genuinely need or have planned and budgeted for.

How much does this item ordinarily cost? How much will I really save?

Sometimes an item on sale is not that much cheaper. In that case, are you really saving or spending your money by paying almost as much as the actual retail price? If you find an item for 50% or 60% off, and you genuinely need that item, then I would agree that it is a good bargain. If an item is reduced by 20% or even 30%, and you don’t really need it then it’s not really a bargain, to my mind.

Items which are reduced by very little are very tempting though. Sometimes it’s an item which I know I will need, say in the next couple of months. What do I do in that case? I really think twice before buying it, especially if it’s not budgeted for and I don’t want the purchase to mess up my budget for that month. I also don’t want to fall prey to advertising gimmicks that tend to increase sales and revenue but tempt me to spend my money that could otherwise be put to better use elsewhere.

As a general rule, if I’m thinking about buying an item on sale, I always check the original price on the item, especially a garment. By the same token, I’m generally very suspicious of items that don’t carry the original price, only the reduced price in which case, I’ll generally just put the item back on the shelf straightaway! Otherwise, how would I know for sure how much I’m saving when I can only see how much I’m actually spending?

Do I have spare ‘fun’ money in my budget this month?

We have sales all year round, and end-of-season sales or holiday sales are just as predictable. This means that you can budget for a sale. If you need an item that you think might just come up in the end-of-season sale then plan for it. If you’ve just come across a sale that you haven’t planned for then ask yourself: Can I spend within my budget? If the answer is No then it’s probably best to avoid the shopping malls altogether so you won’t be tempted to buy.

Sales are great if you can afford them. If you’re a bit short of money then ask yourself: Do I really want to use my credit card for this? Even with the best of intentions of ‘paying it off’ in full when you get paid, inevitably, something else will come up and you will more than likely end up using that money to pay bills or some unplanned emergency expense that you can’t avoid. And the balance will then just sit there, accruing interest, and by continuing to pay interest you will have lost the savings you were meant to have made in the first place.

Do you tend to shop the ‘end-of-season’ sales? What tips do you have for making the most of sales? Please leave me a comment below.

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December, despite being the crazy, hectic month that it is supposed to be, brought a whole lot of grocery finds and savings for us. I managed to avoid the inevitable madness of December shopping by doing most of my grocery shopping earlier on in the month. When I did have to go back to the shops for just a few more items on my shopping list I realised how lucky I was to have planned and finished most of my shopping earlier on! December was an unbelievably hectic time to be in the shops and I’m glad I didn’t get stuck right in the middle of it!

My first stop was at Apple Tree Fresh Food Market and I scored some really good deals at the beginning of the month. I purchased a 10kg pocket of potatoes for R29.00 (their ‘regular’ price is now ocver R70.00!), 7kg butternut also for R29.00 and a 10kg pocket of onions also for the same price. The potatoes and the butternut were our staples for the month, and now into January as well. I also purchased a 5kg bag of beetroot which I used to make pickled beetroot. A 700 gr. jar of pickled beetroot costs on average R25.00 – 27.00 in the shops so if I had to buy about 4,5 kg of pickled beetroot (if we exclude the weight if the beet skin) I would have paid at least R150.00 but I paid R29.00 for the beetroot and R19.00 for the vinegar so this was about a R100.00 saving for us.

Apple Tree Fresh Food Market was also running a special on green beans, tomatoes, lettuce and button mushrooms for R13.00 per punnet so I was able to stock up on that as well. We have enjoyed some really yummy mushroom sauce to go with our meats over the holiday season. I’ve also used some to make mushroom risottos as well as an addition to omelettes – being at home during the holidays meant that we had a lot more time to prepare and enjoy a variety of hearty breakfasts at our leisure! I also bought 3kg of plums for only R25.00 which was about R8.00 per kg and cheaper even than our ‘cheapest’ fruit i.e. bananas.

My next stop was at Meat World. While I was hoping that they would have Biltong on special for just over R120.00 per kg, but they didn’t, I found boneless gammon for R69.00 per kg as well as bacon for R60.00 per kg, which is about R20.00 cheaper than in regular supermarkets. I didn’t buy much else at Meat World as we had other meat which I had stocked up on the previous month, and that’s probably going to last us until end of January and more than likely well into February as well.

Some of my other finds at Pick ‘n’ Pay included milk at R21.00 for 2 litres, yoghurt at R22.00 per litre, butter, oil, eggs at R36.00 for a tray of 30 (regular grain-fed, large eggs) and a variety of other smaller items which were on my shopping list such as crackers, sour cream, toothpaste, air freshener, etc. I also used up a R57.00 in Smart Shopper points on my total shop.

What I did buy at Pick ‘n’ Pay which was not on my shopping list were the Lady Speed stick deodorants which I love and I was so surprised to see how cheap they were – R12.99 each! I also managed to find Mitchum’s antiperspirant stick deodorant for R37.00 on special as well. Their regular price is well over R50.00 and their price on special usually isn’t less than R42.00 each (even Makro was running a special on 2 of those for R85.00 which is R42.50 each). Both of these were a good buy and I think I’m going to regret not stocking up more!

I didn’t buy much at Checkers as they didn’t have items on specials that were on my shopping list for December. I did, however, find 3 ready-made pizzas at R27.00 each (reduced to clear). We had one immediately that night and froze the other two for use later. I also found 400 gr. punnets of strawberries for only R13.00! I bought quite a few, some of which we ate that week, and the rest I washed, removed the stems and froze for use as an addition to porridge, to make smoothies and flavoured water (check out my post on Frugal Summer Refreshments) and to bake. Neither the pizzas nor the strawberries were on my shopping list but I was within my budget so I bought.

I bought most of my toiletries at Dis-Chem as they had quite a few specials on but the absolutely best buy for me were the Handy Andy Actifizz trigger bottles. I used a Unilever deals voucher x 2 for this which they had on offer last month. It was basically buy 2 for the price of 1 up to the value of R45.00 which brought the total voucher amount to R90.00. At 36.00 per bottle the total price for 4 bottles was R144.00 of which R90.00 was discounted as well as a further R13.00 that I had in Dis-Chem Loyalty Benefits points. Effectively, I only paid R41.00 for 4 bottles which came to R10.25 each!!! That was an unbelievable saving and I will be buying the same item again this month to add to my pantry stockpile because the voucher is also available in January. You can have a look at all the Unilever deals or read more about Why I Love Unilever Deals Coupons.

The only item I bought at Woolworths in December ws the steamed Christmas pudding (400 gr.) and 1 packet of mince pies. On 23^rd December Woolworths was offering 30% off to WRewards card holders for any 2 Christmas puddings and/or mince pies. So I paid only R56.00 for the Christmas pudding which was cheaper than any other supermarket at the time. Then again on 27^th December Woolworths was offering 20% off Christmas puddings, labelled as ‘reduced to clear’, so I bought another one for us to enjoy on the days leading up to New Year. You will usually find a few Christmas pudding tubs on ‘reduced to clear’ shelves at Woolworths so if you feel like having some even after Christmas, you can get it a bit cheaper then, though these do get grabbed quite quickly!

And my last find for the month of December was dog food (chunks) for our doggies and shampoo (for me) on Takealot. I actually stocked up quite a bit on dog food which will last us for at least another 3 months. There was some wiggle room in my budget plus the price was really good – between R155.00 – R165.00 per 7.3/10kg bag. The 7.3 kg bag was R35.00-R50.00 cheaper than in supermarkets – depending on the retailer – and the 10kg bag even more cheaper! I’d stocked up on tinned dog food over the previous 2-3 months so I didn’t need to buy that this month. And the 750ml Pantene shampoo was R35.00 cheaper than Dis-Chem.

You might be wondering by now why I haven’t mentioned any Christmas gift shopping in December. If you remember my post from February last year Start Budgeting for Christmas Expenses Now, you’ll know that I started saving for Christmas gifts a little bit each month from then onwards. I was then able to start shopping for Christmas gifts as early as July. It is not true that the best ‘specials’ come just before the end of the year – I’ve actually found some very nice gifts throughout the year so that by the time November came my Christmas gift shopping was done and dusted and everything was packed and ready to go! This kind of planning also reduced a whole lot of panic and stress that comes with finding ‘the right gift’ and I could quite comfortably avoid shopping malls and shopping centres altogether as I didn’t actually need to buy anything.

All in all, with these grocery finds & savings in December that’s a whole R638.00 saved! I’m very happy about the amount.

What were some of your grocery savings & finds in December?

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If you know the standard prices of groceries you regularly buy, you can save yourself a nice chunk of money as you hunt for specials and do your grocery shopping each month. Knowing my prices certainly helps me! So I’ve decided to share my list of the lowest prices of grocery items on special. I keep track of each item’s regular price as well as the lowest price on special advertised for in the shops lately. This list includes prices that are valid as of October 2016.

Why is it important to keep track of prices? Well, when the items you regularly buy go on special you would need to know if it really is the lowest price available on that product of if it a reduced price only at a specific store. Quite a few of our local supermarkets run specials on the same items in the same period, and one of those deals will usually be the best deal, so it’s important to know which one it is.

Also, if you don’t know the standard price of items in shops, how can you tell if the advertised amount on special is a good deal or not? I’m sure that many of you have learnt this the hard way, as I have! In fact, I am still learning and I still make a mistake sometimes – just the other day I returned a bottle of shampoo to a shop as it was R10.00 more expensive than in another shop, almost right next door!

Buying in bulk can be misleading. Often, the prices are cheaper per item, yes, that’s true. At other times, the price is cheaper by 20c or 50c which makes you wonder if you are really going to save much by spending money in fuel and driving or paying for public transport to get to a certain shop.

And quite often retailers will advertise buying a certain item in bulk at a certain price when you can actually buy the single item cheaper in another shop! Yes, I know, I am one of those people who walks around the stores doing my end-of-month grocery shopping with a calculator in my hand as I calculate the price per unit of advertised items in bulk but that’s the only way I can check if I am really getting the cheapest deal available!

Whenever I can get items that we regularly buy and use at their lowest price, that’s when I will buy a few, or more if my budget allows it, to add to my stockpile. I’m especially a fan of stockpiling non-perishable items when I can get them at rock-bottom prices and I will usually wait for the specials to come, and stock up as needed, so that I don’t have to buy these items at their regular prices. I will also stash cuts of meat or vegetables in our freezer when I see them at the lowest price possible.

Here is my list of the lowest prices of grocery and household items on special. These prices are up-to-date as of October 2016.

General Groceries

• Sugar (no name brand): R27.99 for 2.5kg.
• Cake Flour: R19.99 for 2.5kg.
• Sunflower oil (non-GMO): R34.00 for 2-litre bottle.
• Eggs: R36.00 for a crate of 30 grain-fed eggs.
• Soya Mince: R9.99 for a 200gr. packet.
• Puff Pastry (Today): R8.90 for 400gr. roll.
• Frozen Pies (Makro): R8.30 per pie (when bought in bulk of 12).
• Noodles (various): R3.30 per 100gr. packet.
• Rice (Tastic): R10.00 for 1kg (bought in bulk).
• Pasta: Fatti & Moni’s R9.99 or Woolworths R10.00 for 500gr. packet

Meat

• Beef shin stewing meat: R39.99 for 1kg.
• Boerewors: R39.99 for 1kg.
• Biltong: R120.00 for 1kg.
• Minced meat: R49.99 for 1kg.
• Whole chicken: R24.99 for 1kg.
• Chicken pieces in brine: R37.99 for 2kg bag.

Dairy

• Long-life Milk (no name brand): R9.99 for 1 litre (in a 6-pack).
• Plain Yoghurt (various): R23.99 for a 1-litre tub.
• Fruit Yoghurt (various): R10.00 for 6 cups.
• Maas (no name brand): R21.00 for a 2-litre bottle.
• Margarine: Blossom R24.99 for 1kg, Canola R36.00/Flora Gold for 1kg.
• Butter: (Woolworths) R39.99 for 500gr or (Emerald’s) R34.99 for 500gr.
• Cream cheese: R17.00 for a 250gr. tub.
• Gouda or Cheddar: (Lancewood) R79.00 for 900gr.

Tinned Food

• Baked Beans (no name brand): R5.30 for 410gr. tin.
• Corn kernels (Koo): R10.99 for 410gr. tin.
• Tuna: R9.99 for 175 gr. tin.

Household cleaning supplies

• Automatic washing powder (Ariel, Sunlight or Skip): R39.99 for 2kg.
• Fabric Softener (Comfort): R25.00 for 800ml bottle.
• Window cleaner (no name): R22.00 for 750ml bottle
• Handy Andy (no name brand): R9.99 for 750 ml bottle.
• Kitchen cleaner (Handy Andy Actifizz): R19.00 per 750ml refill.
• Dishwashing liquid (no name brand): R16.00 for 1-litre bottle.
• Tile Cleaner (Glade): R16.00 for 1-litre bottle.
• Dishwasher tablets (Mr.Sheen): R72.00 for 36 tablets.
• Pine Gel (Westpack): R68.00 for a 5-litre bucket.

Toiletries

• Toothpaste (Colgate/Aquafresh): R7.00 for 100 ml tube.
• Mouthwash (Colgate): R42.00 for 500ml + 250ml bottles.
• Soap (Protex, Dettol or Pears): R7.00 or R7.30 for 200 gr.
• Cotton Buds (Dove): R9.99 for a packet of 200.
• Shampoo or Conditioner (Tres Semme): R49.99 for 900ml.
• Razors (no name brand): R6.00 for a packet of 2 disposable razors.
• Tissues (Twinsaver): R9.99 for a packet of 200.
• Toilet paper (Baby-Soft): R74.00 for 18s.

Fruits

• Bananas: R7.00 for 1kg.
• Oranges: R20.00 for a 7kg pocket.
• Apples: R6,60 for 1kg (when bough in bulk of 3kg)
• Strawberries: R10.00 for a punnet.

Vegetables

• Carrots: R10.00 for 5kg.
• Potatoes: R34.00 for a 7kg pocket.
• Cabbage: R10.00 for 2.
• Lettuce: R10.00 for 3.
• Spinach: R10.00 for 3.
• Butternut: R20.00 for 7kg.
• Mushrooms: R10.00 for a punnet.

I do hope you will find this list useful. There are, of course, once-off specials I may come across from time to time, but unfortunately, these do not repeat (though I wish they did!) and I have not included them in this list.

If you know of any prices that are lower than these though, or if there are any items that you would like to see included in this list, please do let me know by leaving me a comment below.

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Today I’m going to share with you how I meal plan monthly around specials in the shops. I have been doing this for so long now that I don’t think it would even occur to me to simply walk into a shop and buy whatever I want and whenever I want! Your grocery spending can be a huge drain on your finances each month (it certainly used to be in ours!) and planning meals around specials in the shops can be a great way to cut down on your total grocery bill for the month as well as help you keep this amount in check.

The “process” for monthly meal planning around specials is really very simple. I don’t have a lot of time on my hands but I make it a point to go through all the monthly specials each month (usually the ones just before the 25^th of the month are the best), and I generally use the inserts in our copy of the Alberton Record. I always look at all the supermarket, butchery and greengrocer specials in our area as you never know what kind of awesome specials you might find! You can try using a local newspaper delivered in your area for this purpose or check out the app called Tindeo (for Android) – they have up to date specials on pretty much all the supermarkets chains in SA and more, or alternatively, have a look at individual supermarket catalogues of specials for the month (a quick Google search should give you what you’re looking for).

Also, remember to check out the Unilever Deals for available coupons that you can use that month as well as the Snap n Save app on your phone. Do you have any Smart Shopper points that you can use? Don’t forget to print your Smart Shopper points voucher before your start shopping at your local Pick ‘n’ Pay as well as to check if you have been given any personalised vouchers that you can print from the kiosk and use immediately. I also usually check if there are any 3 for 2 deals at Woolworths and what additional discounts are available for WRewards members, as well as what’s available from Checkers Eezi coupons and Spar Rewards.

So here’s what to do to start meal planning around specials each month.

Step 1

Always check what you have in your pantry and freezer first as well as fresh produce on the veggie rack. Do you have all the ingredients needed for a meal or several meals? From there on you can plan for the meals you would like to make during the month based on what you have in the pantry and freezer. This is a great way to use up some of the items at hand which means you will need to buy less that month.

Step 2

Are there any items in your pantry and freezer that you might need to top up for a meal or even better, several meals? Look at the specials for the month and check if any of the missing ingredients are on special then plan to buy those. Again, because you will be using some of the items you already have this means that you will need to buy less.

Step 3

Browse through the specials for the month. Are there any staples, proteins (meat) and vegetables that are on special that you could use for a meal? Or a bunch of meals? Then make a note and get those! Is there anything that you would like to buy at rock-bottom price to add to your stockpile (within budget)? Then take a note of those items too! All of this will definitely save you money on your grocery bill each month. I can’t imagine not shopping for food on specials – it really is a huge saving for us.

Click here to download your FREE printable:

Meal Planning Around Specials Shopping List.

Now what about the meals, you might ask? Any suggestions? Check out my post Meal Planning Ideas for a few helpful hints.

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I’m a huge fan of stockpiling non-perishable items in moderation. We don’t have a lot of space to store food or other items so my stockpile can never get too big, which is a good thing! I do have enough space for stockpiling certain items which we use on a regular basis and whenever I can get these items at their lowest in the shops, I buy as much as my budget allows.

When I meal plan for the month, I always make sure I check my pantry and freezer for items which I already have and which I can use in the coming weeks. This helps us keep our grocery bill in check and also helps us save overall – if I bought an item at a very low price this means that the meal I prepare with it will cost me less overall (you can read more about this in my post Meal Planning Around Specials).

Stockpiling allows you to take advantage of very low prices and this carries on throughout the year. Starting a stockpile doesn’t have to cost you a whole lot. Simply spend a bit extra, within your budget of course, to stockpile certain items when they go on special. I try and look for rock-bottom prices. In August, for example, I bought 4 bottles of Comfort fabric softener at R25.00 a bottle when normally a bottle costs over R40.00 and even on special it comes down to only about R36.00 so. This was a huge saving.

In July I found Alpo Purina dog chunks at R 149.00 per 8kg (normally this bag is over R200.00) as well as Husky tinned dog food at just over R17.00 per tin (normally they are about R23.00 or more each) so I bought as much as I could within my budget that month. This means that I will be saving money on those particular items by not buying them at a higher price.

It is important to check the expiry dates on all your stockpiled items. I do this twice: I first check the expiry date on the items before I buy them and when I store the stockpiled items I make a note of expiry dates somewhere visible in my pantry so that I am reminded of what needs to be used up and by which date. This really does help as it’s so easy for items to end up right at the back of a shelf and you only get to them when it’s too late, and you don’t want to turn your intended saving into a waste!

If you stockpile already, what are some of your favourite items to stockpile when you can? Here are my top items to stockpile in my pantry which you might find useful if you are just starting out with stockpiling.

• Coffee and Tea.

• Tinned meat (tuna, sardines, corned beef).

• Tinned vegetables & fruit (baked beans, for example).

• Tinned pet food.

• Pasta & rice.

• Oil, sugar and flour.

• Rusks & crackers.

• Laundry washing powder & fabric softener.

• Household cleaning supplies.

• Toiletries (shampoo, toothpaste, soap, toilet paper)

Having a stockpile, even a small one, can help reduce your expenses each month. Even if you decide to spend only a hundred or two hundred Rand each month, within your budget of course, to stockpile on items when available at their lowest prices, I’m sure you will find that it does help from one month to the next.

Have you ever taken part in a Pantry and Freezer Challenge in order to reduce the amount of items you have in your stockpile, no matter how small, and to save a bit of money? I have! You can start by reading my post Take the Pantry and Freezer Challenge.

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I first heard of Snap n Save mobile app sometime late last year. I downloaded and started using the mobile app a few months ago. Having read and come across so many blog posts by fellow frugal bloggers, especially in the UK and the US, about cash-back apps, I was thrilled to finally come across a similar app for us to use in South Africa.

It’s a cash-back app meaning I can get a certain amount of cash back when I buy items that are featured in the app. To download the app simply search for Snap n Save in your mobile app store and after downloading and installing, register with your cell phone number and a password. Then you’re good to go.

Browse the offers and book the ones you want. You then have 48 hours to buy the item before your booking expires. You then take a photo of your till slip and wait up to 48 hours for approval. If the photo has been uploaded correctly and all the necessary information displays accurately on their side, you get the cash back into your Snap n Save wallet. When you decide to redeem your cash you will receive a coupon and you can use it at any Pick ‘n’ Pay or Dis-Chem and a few other shops. You can read in more detail about how it works in here.

What do I like about Snap n Save?

You definitely save money on certain items. Some items display as high as 51% off. Many items, however, offer just over R1.00 or R2.00 or R3.00 or R4.00. Other items offer a saving of R5.00 or R20.00. What I’ve also seen is that they offer cash back on certain items which are on special in store already so you save double, so to speak, but those are really few and far between.

Do I use Snap n Save?

I have it installed on my phone. I check for new additions each week. It seems new items are added on Fridays and some of those items get booked very quickly, especially the ones with the higher savings amounts. I guess the app has become popular since I first came across it.

How many items have I bought and cashed back using Snap n Save?

Just a few over the last few months, and I’ll tell you why. While they offer everyday items such as bread, milk, vegetables, oil, cool drinks, alcoholic drinks, chocolates, pet food, household cleaning materials, etc. some of those brands and/or items I actually don’t buy at all and the items that I do buy, I usually get the cheaper varieties which still cost me less on special than with the cash I would get back by buying the items listed in the app at full price. This is why I only had R16.50 in my wallet and finally this month I decided to spend it instead of having that amount of money just sitting there; after all, it is money that I’d spent some time ago.

Redeeming the Snap n Save voucher at a Pick ‘n’ Pay till was easy enough, although the teller was unfamiliar with it and had to call the supervisor to assist. Other than that, I had no problems redeeming the voucher and I was happy to have at least R16.50 taken off my final bill.

All in all, I prefer the instant vouchers/coupons/specials available on the grocery items that I buy in store each month. If there were more items available on Snap n Save that I actually need and/or buy on a regular basis I’d be happy to use the cash-back app more often. I will keep checking the deals every week though – you never know what awesome deals might become available!

Disclaimer: Financial compensation was not received for this post. Opinions expressed here are my own.

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Because I’ve been doing the Pantry and Freezer Challenge for a couple of weeks now, and using up groceries from our pantry and freezer, I spent less than what I budgeted for our grocery shopping in both July and August. This month’s grocery shopping was definitely a breeze as I didn’t need to buy too many items at all. We have a number of ready-made meals available in our freezer to use even in September and again all because of the Pantry and Freezer Challenge that I’ve been doing this month! That really has been a money saver for us over the last few weeks. However, I did have to go grocery shopping at the end of the month and here are some of the savings I’d found.

My first grocery stop was at Pick ‘n’ Pay and I bought quite a few of my groceries there. They had a lot of good specials though we didn’t need to buy too many. Pick ‘n’ Pay also offered a R50.00 voucher to Smart Shoppers who spent over R500.00 in their store in one go. I certainly made use of that! And If I’m not mistaken this promotion was valid until 28 August although the voucher is valid for 2 weeks from the date of issue.

I shopped at Pick ‘n Pay on two different days so I got a R50.00 voucher for each shop (that was the plan!). On the second day I used up the first R50.00 voucher I received and kept the second voucher to be used another time (you only get the voucher after you’ve bought but I don’t suppose anyone would stop you from walking back into the shop straightaway to spend it). I also used up another R80.00 in Smart Shopper points, which I was pleased about and for the first time ever, I also cashed in my Snap n Save points at Pick ‘n’ Pay. I didn’t have too much money in my Snap n Save wallet, only R16.50 but I decided to cash it in anyway (you can read why in my post My take on Snap n Save).

Pick ‘n’ Pay had whole chickens at just R24.99 per kg so I stocked up on that as well as minced meat at R55.00 per kg. They also had Canola margarine 1kg for R47.00, a crate of eggs for R35.99, 2.5 kg sugar for R24.99, Mr. Sheen dishwasher tablets 32s for R72.00, ham at the deli for R65.00 per kg (that’s half the price), 1kg Kellog’s cornflakes for R36.99, long life milk (6s) for R65.99, 1 litre plain Yoghurt at R19.00 and Glade automatic freshener refills 2 for R69.99. These are just some of the items that I bought.

Several people have actually asked me why I prefer to buy long-life milk instead of the sachets or the bottles, well, it’s because of the price and I have been buying long-life milk every month on special for several years now. The price of long-life milk on special nowadays is usually R11.00 per litre whereas milk in bottles can go up to R14.00 per litre, or a bit more than that. We go through about 10-12 litres of milk per month which means I save about R36.00 if I buy the long-life milk instead of the sachets or the bottles. Powdered milk would possibly be even cheaper but we just don’t like the taste of powdered milk in our tea/coffee so long-life milk it is!

I found some good R100 deals at Makro this month: 4 bottles of Comfort fabric softener for R100 (they are normally R45.00 each but they only cost R25.00 each with this deal), 6 bottles of Glade tile cleaner for R 100 (they are about R24.00 per bottle but I paid just over R16.00), 7 bottles of Furniture polish for R100 (normally I pay about R19.00 for the cheapest one but this cost me just over R14.00 each) and 2kg Ouma rusks also for R100 as well as 6 bottles of Hall’s 1,25 litre juice concentrate.

If I am buying in bulk I always check the price per unit as I want to make sure that I am paying less per unit that I normally would in the shops. I’m one of those people that you would see walking around the shops with a small calculator to check prices as I go along! Knowing how much items in general cost also helps but since I do our grocery shopping each month I know the prices of items that we regularly buy off by heart. Unless it’s a really good deal, I won’t buy in bulk.

Meat World Alberton had the cheapest Gouda cheese at R69.99 per kg (compare that to 900 gr. of Gouda cheese for R95.00 at Checkers and R89.98 at Woolworths). Pick ‘n’ Pay had no name plain Yoghurt at R19.99 whereas plain Yoghurt at Woolworths was R25.00 if you bought 2 for R50.00 and about R28.00 each at Checkers. Ariel washing powder was just over R44.00 at Checkers while it was on special at Pick ‘n’ Pay for just over R48.00 so of course I stopped by Checkers on my way home to get a couple of bags. All in all I bought a handful of items at Checkers this month and nothing at Woolworths.

At Apple Tree Fresh Food Market I bought potatoes and onions in bulk for the month, some bananas and apples (3kg for R30.00) and I also found about 2kg of Brinjals for R10.00 and 5 very large green peppers for R15.00 which I used to make stuffed Brinjals for us.

All in all, that’s close to R700.00 that I did not spend this month. If I take into account that I didn’t have to do a very large shop this month, and I spent less than what I had originally budgeted for groceries, that was a huge saving.

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Apart from being cold, July has definitely been a quiet month in terms of grocery shopping in our household. I have been so swamped with work over the past 7 weeks, and including weekends, that I have not had the time or the energy to do as much grocery shopping as I normally do.

I bought groceries from Checkers and Pick ‘n’ Pay this month only. I went to Checkers one day after work and then I went to Pick ‘n’ Pay the following day, also after work. The fact that I had been so busy that I actually had to go shopping after work was less than ideal for me. I am tired after a whole day at work and I often feel rushed to get the shopping done before the shops close and then to get home before I am too exhausted to unpack and put everything away.

I did not go to Meat World for any meat or to the Apple Tree in Alberton for fruit and veggies last month. As it happens, I had enough veggie staples, which for us is potatoes, onions and carrots, to last us for at least two weeks. I would have liked to have gone to Apple Tree in Alberton but as I was at work most weekends last month, that just wasn’t possible. Luckily as well, our freezer was more than sufficiently stocked with enough meat to last us for the whole month ahead. I also had several left-over meals and meals that I had cooked in large batches in our freezer so as I was preparing the shopping list I realised that I wouldn’t actually have to do that much grocery shopping in July anyway, which was a relief, considering how little time I had on my hands.

In terms of specials that I’d found, Pick ‘n’ Pay had good specials on no name brand sugar and long-life milk, Protex bars of soap, sandwich ham at just over R50.00 per kilo (or R5.00 per 100 grams), Pedigree meat pouches at R16.00 for 4 pouches (normally they are about R7.00 per pouch), oil, coffee, tea, Ouma rusks, Tropika juices, dishwasher tablets, cookies, eggs (R34.00 for a tray) and puff pastry. Those are just some of the specials that I’d found which I needed or wanted to buy for us for the month ahead.

In terms of specials at Checkers, they had good specials on Lancewood 1-litre yoghurt tubs, Alpo Purina dog chunks at R 149.00 per 8kg (normally this bag is over R200.00), a variety of ready-made meals reduced to clear for R10.00 / R13.00 / R20.00 per meal, reduced to clear ready-to-roast veggie bags at R20.00 for a very large bag and Husky tinned dog food at just over R17.00 per tin (normally they are about R23.00 or more each). I bought less at Checkers as they simply had fewer items on special which we needed for the month.

Overall, I spent about R330 less in July by shopping specials. On an even more positive note, I spent overall less than what I had budgeted for groceries in July simply because I bought less.

And on an even more positive, and frugal, note I’ve decided that I will be cooking up a storm and getting super, super creative this month with whatever we have in our pantry and freezer. This is partly to compensate for the small amount of grocery shopping which I did in July to get us through the month, and also because I want to save that bit of money which I did not spend on groceries and put it to better use.

So join me in the Pantry and Freezer Challenge in the month of August!

Read more about it in my post Take the Pantry and Freezer Challenge.

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I love Unilever Deals coupons. I have been using their coupons for several months now and I have scored some pretty good deals so far! Before I go grocery shopping nowadays I always check what coupons are available.

Unilever Deals website offers coupons for various Unilever products which you can use at Pick ‘n’ Pay, Checkers, Shoprite or Dischem. Each store often has different coupons available so it’s worth checking out all the coupons available at each store. Sometimes, the coupons are exactly the same at 2 or 3 of the stores which means that you can buy the same item at a discounted price more than once. If you’re looking to stock up on an item then this is great.

The Unilever Deals coupons change every month but they are also valid for the whole calendar month, which means you can grab the coupon and buy the item when you’re ready. Sometimes the same item is further reduced and on special in the shop in which case, you would save even more. Very often, however, this is not the case and you will be using the discount against the item’s full price which may still be a few Rand more expensive than the same item of a different brand – be prepared for that.

It’s very easy to register to use the Unilever Deals coupons. Go to the Unilever Deals website and click on the Sign Up button, enter your cell phone number and a password and you’re in. Browse the coupons available and click on Add to Basket. When you’re ready to use the coupon, click on Checkout and the Unilever Deals coupons code will be SMS-ed to your cell phone. Then simply present this SMS at the till and ask the cashier to apply the code to your purchase. If the cashier is a bit unsure of how to apply the coupon, simply request a manager on duty to assist you and they will.

I have so far not had any problems using the Unilever Deals coupons. When I first wanted to use them though I checked with the Pick ‘n’ Pay and Dischem managers on duty to see if the shop is indeed using them, which they should be, and I’ve always had a positive reply. The Unilever Deals coupons are really very easy to use and there always seem to be several thousand coupons available for each item which means a lot more people can benefit from the Unilever Deals coupons.

What I like about the Unilever Deals coupons the most is that it’s instant cash off your purchase which is great. What I also like is that they allow me to buy certain items which otherwise might just be a bit too expensive for my budget. This month, for example, I used a R20.00 Unilever coupon for a 1kg tub of Flora Gold margarine with Buttermilk. The full price of the item was R56.00 in the shops but I bought it for R36.00 using the coupon available. The discounted price was actually quite reasonable although yes, you could buy a 1kg tub of other brand margarine for a few Rand less.

The only aspect of the Unilever Deals coupons website that I don’t find particularly useful is that doesn’t show you the full price of the item – it displays only the discounted amount for each. As a result, I have to actually check how much the item costs in the shop first and then I decide whether or not I want to use a certain coupon. This means that I will usually only request the SMS coupon when I’m actually at the store.

Do you use Unilever Deals coupons? If you do, I’d love to hear about your experiences. Please leave me a comment below.

Disclaimer: Financial compensation was not received for this post. Opinions expressed here are my own.

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